The city of Las Vegas, Nevada and its surrounding unincorporated communities in the Las Vegas metropolitan area are the sites of more than 160 high-rises, 42 of which stand taller than 400 feet (122 m). The tallest structure in the city is the Stratosphere Tower, which rises 1,149 feet (350 m) on the northern end of the Las Vegas Strip. The tower is also the tallest observation tower in the United States. Since the Stratosphere Tower is not fully habitable, it is not considered a “building”, it’s known as an observation tower. The tallest building in Las Vegas is the under-construction Fontainebleau Resort Las Vegas, which rises 735 feet (224 m) and was topped out in early 2009. The tallest completed building in the city is the 53-story Palazzo, which rises 642 feet (196 m) and was completed in 2007.

The history of skyscrapers in Las Vegas began with the 1954 completion of the Castaways Hotel and Casino in Downtown Las Vegas; the 216-foot (66 m) structure stood as the tallest building in the city until 1961, and was demolished in 2006. Beginning with the completion of the Diamond of the Dunes Tower in 1961, high-rise hotels began to become more concentrated on the Las Vegas Strip. The first high-rise hotel and casino resort to rise higher than 492 feet (150 m) was the 529-foot (161 m) New York-New York Hotel & Casino, completed in 1997. Las Vegas entered into a skyscraper-building boom in the late 1990s that has continued to the present; of the city’s 40 tallest skyscrapers, 39 were completed after 1997. As of 2009, the skyline of Las Vegas is ranked 60th in the world and 20th in the United States with 168 completed high-rises.

In what is being dubbed a “Manhattanization wave”, there are over 30 skyscrapers that are proposed, approved or under construction in the city that are planned to rise over 400 feet (122 m) in height. The tallest building approved for the city is the World Jewelry Center, which has been approved for construction in Downtown Las Vegas. The 815-foot (248 m) tower is part of a proposal to construct a hub for the world’s jewelry industry, and was originally expected to be completed in 2011. As of July 2009, however, the building’s construction has been delayed by several months as a result of the global economic crisis. The tallest building under construction in Las Vegas is the Fontainebleau Resort Las Vegas, which has also been the tallest building in the city since its topping out in early 2009. That project, however, is facing difficulties resulting from the economic crisis; as of July 2009, construction has been reduced to skeleton crews due to financial problems and lawsuits.

Name

Height ft (m)

Floors

Year

1

Stratosphere Tower

1,149 (350)

112

1996

2

Fontainebleau Resort

735 (224)

63

2010

3

The Palazzo

642 (196)

53

2007

4

Encore at Wynn

631 (192)

50

2008

5

Trump International

622 (190)

64

2008

6

Wynn Las Vegas

614 (187)

60

2005

7

The Cosmopolitan Beach Club Tower

603 (184)

51

2010

7

The Cosmopolitan Casino Spa Tower

603 (184)

53

2010

9

Aria

600 (183)

50

2009

9

Planet Hollywood Westgate Tower I

600 (183)

50

2009

11

Vdara

554 (169)

57

2009

12

Eiffel Tower at Paris

540 (165)

3

1999

13

Mandarin Oriental

539 (164)

56

2009

14

New York-New York

529 (161)

49

1997

15

Palms Place

520 (158)

47

2008

16

Bellagio

508 (155)

36

1998

17

Sky Las Vegas

500 (152)

45

2007

17

The Martin

500 (152)

42

2009

19

THEhotel

485 (148)

64

2003

20

Mandalay Bay

480 (146)

62

1999

21

Turnberry Place – Tower I

477 (145)

38

2001

21

Turnberry Place – Tower II

477 (145)

38

2002

21

Turnberry Place – Tower III

477 (145)

38

2004

21

Turnberry Place – Tower IV

477 (145)

38

2006

25

The Signature Tower I

475 (145)

38

2006

25

The Signature Tower II

475 (145)

38

2006

25

The Signature Tower III

475 (145)

38

2007

25

The Venetian

475 (145)

40

1999

29

Allure Las Vegas – Tower I

466 (142)

41

2007

30

Palms Fantasy Tower

458 (140)

40

2006

31

Turnberry Towers – Tower I

453 (138)

45

2007

31

Turnberry Towers – Tower II

453 (138)

45

2008

33

Caesars Palace – Palace Tower

453 (133)

29

1998

34

Veer Towers West

433 (129)

37

2010

34

Veer Towers East

433 (129)

37

2010

34

Rio Masquerade Tower

433 (129)

42

1997

34

Palms Casino Resort

433 (129)

42

2001

38

Marriott’s Grand Chateau

420 (128)

37

2008

38

Panorama Tower I

420 (128)

33

2006

38

Panorama Tower II

420 (128)

33

2007

41

Hilton Grand Vacations Club – Tower 2

405 (123)

38

2006

42

Fitzgeralds Casino Hotel Las Vegas

400 (122)

34

1979

42

Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino

400 (122)

39

2000

Stratosphere Tower
Tallest observation tower in the United States, second-tallest in the Western Hemisphere after the CN Tower in Toronto; second-tallest free-standing structure in the U.S. west of the Mississippi River, after the Kennecott Smokestack in Utah; has been the tallest structure in Las Vegas and Nevada since 1996

New York-New York
Tallest building constructed in Las Vegas in the 1990s

Aria
Floors 40-49 are skipped due to superstition

The Palazzo
Tallest completed building in Las Vegas and Nevada; tallest hotel in Las Vegas

Trump International
Tallest residential building in the city

Fitzgeralds Casino Hotel Las Vegas
Tallest building in Downtown Las Vegas; tallest building constructed in Las Vegas in the 1970s

Fontainebleau Resort
Under construction; the Fontainebleau Resort was topped out in early 2009, becoming the tallest building in Las Vegas and the state of Nevada. Tallest building constructed in Las Vegas in the 2000s

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article “List of tallest buildings in Las Vegas”, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.